The Big Theme

There's the best, and there's the rest. Only three schools
— Florida, Syracuse and Northwestern — received
first-place votes in our survey of NCAA Division I women's
coaches.

The margin between No. 1 Florida and No. 2 Syracuse was
razor-thin too. In the end, the fact that the Gators graduated no
starters and are stacked with seniors carried the day in our minds.
No. 4 Maryland wasn't too far off, though. While no one put the
Terps at No. 1, they were the only other team that any of our
voters put in the Top 3.

The Big Question Mark

The powers that be seem genuinely undecided about No. 15
Cornell. A few voters didn't rank them at all; others had the Big
Red as high as No. 11. Cornell doesn't have any big-name stars, but
they play consistently and coach Jenny Graap is excellent at
scouting opponents' weaknesses. For a team with six Top 20
opponents on its schedule, that's dangerous.

Mostly, Cornell seems to be the embodiment of the trap game.
Said one opposing coach, "In years past, you knew who the top teams
were, who was in the middle of the pack, and [who was] at the
bottom. Now you have to pay attention."

Underrated

No. 2 Syracuse
It's No. 1 versus No. 2, but separation between them really is
tiny, and since freshman Kayla Treanor combined for 10 goals
against Jacksonville and at Champion Challenge against Team USA,
the loss of Sarah Holden seems less grave.

No. 13 Ohio State
The Buckeyes were young last year, and they still took
Northwestern to overtime and held Florida to a season-low offensive
output in the ALC semifinals. A lights-out goalie like Tori
DeScenza can be a game-changer.

No. 17 UMass
The Minutewomen have a great attack, and sophomore goalie Rachel
Vallarelli should develop quickly under former Nortwestern goalie
and new UMass assistant Brianne LoManto. UMass plays a weak
out-of-conference schedule, so it's hard to say how they'll stack
up against top competition. But no one will be excited to have to
face them in the NCAA tournament. The A10 AQ is a given for them
— no one in the conference has beaten UMass since 2010.

Bold Prediction

No. 6 Loyola makes its first final four. They played well
against Maryland in the quarterfinals last year, but with no real
draw specialist, it was too hard to get possessions versus Karri
Ellen Johnson.

Now the Greyhounds have watched their men's team go all the way,
and have a healthy Taryn VanThof on the draw and the awesome Marlee
Paton on the circle. They've got the passion and the personnel.
While young, Loyola plays seven Top 20 opponents in the regular
season and will be battle-tested by May.